The mystery donor whose £1m has transformed lives

St Michael le Belfrey Church received a £1m anonymous donation in 2021

A church has spent three years "transforming lives" with £1m it was gifted by an anonymous donor.

St Michael le Belfrey in York city centre used the money to launch a social action programme which has supported people following the pandemic.

It has been able to hand out £200,000 in grants to local charities to fund projects such as horse therapy, warm spaces and a cafe employing ex-offenders.

The programme's manager, Alison Dawson, said they had been "absolutely blown away" by the donation.

One of the charities that received a grant provides "horse therapy" to children disengaged from education

She added: "It put us in the really great position of answering the question, 'what would you do if someone gave you £1m for your city?'.

"It was really unusual to have that opportunity to support people in York in the way that we were able to."

One of the grant beneficiaries was Transitions CIC, which gives children aged 10-16 who have disengaged from school the chance to work with horses.

"They provide horse therapy for children who are going through a rough time," Ms Dawson said.

"They may be outside of mainstream education or they may have social, emotional, and mental health needs. The charity works with these children on farmland, where they can look after and ride the horses."

The founder of Transitions CIC, Hannah Brown, said the money had been used to invest in staff and facilities.

"We now have a wonderful indoor space, a shepherd’s hut, which the young people love and find calming and nurturing," she added.

"The grant has also enabled us to buy a new therapy horse, who is and will be instrumental in our equine therapy work going forward."

Transitions CIC said it was able to buy a new therapy horse with the grant

The grants also helped to support Chocolate & Co café, which employs ex-offenders and people recovering from addiction.

York Vineyard, which provides soft play and free baby clothing for refugee families, and loneliness and poverty charity St Denys Tea & Chat Warm Space also received funding.

Ms Dawson said the remainder of the original £1m would fund the church's own projects for the next three years, including a counselling service and a debt centre which has already helped eight clients clear £120,000 of debt.

She added: "We are really grateful to the donor, whoever they are, for that opportunity."

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